As home opener looms, Solar Bears from past recall days in Orlando fondly

5:06 p.m. EST, October 19, 2012|By Alicia DelGallo, Orlando Sentinel

More than 10,000 fans watched as the Orlando Solar Bears won the International Hockey League championship in 2001.

Coach Peter Horachek hoisted the Turner Cup above his head and made his way to the fans, who were celebrating in the parking lot of the then-TD Waterhouse Centre hours later.

"The fans used to tailgate before and after the games," Horachek said. "It was like an NFL football game. They appreciated the opportunity to drink out of the cup and touch it.

"They felt like it was theirs, too."

Now the Solar Bears are in the ECHL, formerly the East Coast Hockey League, and will play their first regular-season home game Saturday night against the Florida Everblades before a soldout crowd at Amway Center. It will be the first time hockey fans in Orlando have seen a Solar Bear since the IHL disbanded 11 years ago.

"It's been a while," Horachek said. "I just know that people were behind us at that time, so hopefully the new team keeps the success that goes along with the Solar Bears name."

Todd Richards, captain of the 2001 title team, will participate in pregame ceremonies Saturday night. Richards, 45, played for the Solar Bears for all six seasons of their IHL existence and is currently the coach of the NHL's Columbus Blue Jackets.

"It's exciting," Richards said. "I have a lot of fond memories of Orlando and the things we were able to do down there, and the people of Orlando were a big part of it. The fans were really disappointed when hockey was gone."

If history repeats itself, Orlando hockey fans are in for an exciting season.

In 1995, their inaugural season in the IHL, the Solar Bears struggled to find a rhythm and lost several games early. Orlando entered a game Friday night against Florida in Estero with a 0-1-1 record.

"I remember one game coming off the ice thinking about how poorly we played," Richards said. "I was really disappointed, and I remember the fans were cheering. They had a good time, and they also understood that you aren't going to play great all the time.

"I remember thinking that was unique."

By the end of the '95-96 season, the Solar Bears made it to the finals before losing in four games to the Utah Grizzlies.

"The fans were incredible every year I was here, really vibing the team," said Hubie McDonough, who played in Orlando for four years.

McDonough, 49, later became the Solar Bears' director of hockey operations and now holds the same position for the Manchester, N.H., Monarchs of the American Hockey League.

The last year he played, in 1999, the Solar Bears were in the finals against the host Houston Aeros. Orlando lost in seven games, but McDonough always remembered how many fans drove to Houston to support the team.

After the Solar Bears won the championship two years later, McDonough took the Turner Cup home for a night.